The Neolithic Age
Realm 04: The First Farmers & Sedentary Settlements
THE NEW STONE AGE ONTOLOGY
MICRO-REALM 01
The Agricultural Revolution
- Transition from food gathering to food production
- Cultivation of wheat, barley, ragi, and horse gram
- Shift from nomadism to settled life
- Creation of surplus leading to population growth
MICRO-REALM 02
Polished Stone Tools
- Ground and polished tools (Celts, Axes, Adzes)
- Smoother edges for increased cutting efficiency
- Used for forest clearance and primitive farming
- Querns and mullers for grinding grain
MICRO-REALM 03
Animal Domestication
- Cattle, sheep, and goats kept in enclosures
- Provided regular supply of milk, meat, and hide
- Animals used for traction and manure
- Pastoralism coexisting with agriculture
MICRO-REALM 04
Sedentary Settlements
- Permanent villages replacing temporary camps
- Wattle and daub construction (mud and reeds)
- Sun-dried mud-brick houses in the Northwest
- Circular and rectangular dwelling plans
MICRO-REALM 05
Invention of Pottery
- Necessitated by the need to store surplus grain
- Initially handmade, later produced on the potter's wheel
- Used for cooking, eating, and storage
- Burnished, painted, and cord-impressed wares
MICRO-REALM 06
Mehrgarh (Balochistan)
- One of the oldest agricultural settlements (c. 7000 BCE)
- Earliest evidence of cotton cultivation in the world
- Multi-room rectangular mud-brick houses
- Precursor to the Harappan civilization
MICRO-REALM 07
Burzahom & Gufkral
- Kashmiri Neolithic sites with deep pit dwellings
- Extensive use of polished bone tools
- Unique practice of burying dogs with their masters
- Lack of early microliths; emphasis on hunting/fishing
MICRO-REALM 08
Chirand (Bihar)
- Located at the confluence of four rivers
- Remarkable abundance of bone and antler implements
- Cultivation of rice, wheat, and pulses
- Circular houses with wattle and daub walls
MICRO-REALM 09
South Indian Ash Mounds
- Sites: Piklihal, Utnur, Kupgal (Karnataka/AP)
- Accumulation of cow dung set on fire
- Indicates a heavily pastoral, cattle-keeping economy
- Ragi (finger millet) as the staple crop
MICRO-REALM 10
Social Organization
- Formation of structured tribal communities
- Division of labor based on gender and age
- Surplus food allowed specialized crafts (potters, weavers)
- Incipient social inequality visible in grave goods